Keeping in mind the highly fragile environment of Uttarakhand, global road safety body International Road Federation or IRF has written to the state Chief Minister Harish Rawat asking him to develop greener roads and highways to reduce carbon emissions in the Himalayan state. It also seeks construction industry to use eco-friendly and recycled materials to further green the transport infrastructure and reduce the per capita carbon footprints in the state…

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nternational Road Federation (IRF), a global body working for better and safer roads world wide has written a letter to Uttarakhand Chief Minister Harish Rawat, who is also Public works Minister requesting him to help in developing green highways and roads by using innovative eco-friendly, recovered and recycled construction materials to further green the transport infrastructure and reduce the per capita carbon footprints in the hill state of Uttarakhand .

“In order to mitigate global warming it has become imperative to control Green House Gas (GHG) emissions from the transport and road construction and maintenance sector. During construction and maintenance of each mile of road thousands of tons of materials such as aggregate stone, concrete, asphalt and steel are needed, let alone all of the diesel fuel required to power the construction equipment and to transport materials to and from the project site. This not only eats up precious natural resources but emit tones of pollution” said Mr K K Kapila Chairman, International Road Federation (IRF) in his letter. Founded in 1948, the Geneva-based International Road Federation (IRF) is the only world forum advocating better and safer roads through optimum road design and construction.

“There is great need develop green highways and roads with less damaging way by recovering and recycling existing local available materials and utilising specially engineered binders to produce effective stabilised building materials that enable existing waste streams like fly ash in the road construction . Now is the time to embrace a new way to design, plan, build and maintain road infrastructure, consistent with green road building practices” said Mr Kapila.

“The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRT&H) in it’s various circulars has already advised to evaluate the design, construction and maintenance activities for all road projects, with the aim of reducing GHG adverse effects on the climate change” said Mr Kapila

“International Road Federation (IRF) is taking action and leading the way to meet the calls for a greener transport system through safe and sustainable road infrastructure. Taking an initiative IRF has developed a Greenhouse Gas Calculator called “CHANGER” which calculates the GHG emissions from road construction and maintenance activities. The “CHANGER” besides giving data for the complete work as one unit, can also provide segmental information on different components of construction and maintenance activities. This enables re-design and re-structuring of various road building and maintenance activities, to reduce green house gas emissions.” Said Mr Kapila.

“IRF has requested the chief Minister to issue necessary directions be issued to the Highway Department / PWD, to use the “CHANGER” in assessing the GHG emissions from road construction and maintenance activities and thereby take necessary corrective measures to minimize the GHG emissions and their adverse effect on the climate,” said Mr Kapila.